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Obligation of Prayer in Masjid: Understanding the Context of Ahadeeth

Answered as per Hanafi Fiqh by Muftionline.co.za

Q: Is prayer in musjid obligatory? There is a hadeeth which says something like prayer not being accepted if you hear the azaan and don’t go to the musjid. Also there is a hadeeth of a blind man and he wasn’t given concession to pray at home if he heard the azaan. Also there is another hadeeth about the prophet (Sallallahu Alayhi Wasallam) wanting to burn the houses of those who don’t pray in the musjid. Yet I heard zakir naik say most scholars say it is sunnah muakkada (maybe he meant if we don’t hear azaan). Also if prayer is obligatory in the musjid if you hear the azaan, how should this be understood in modern times? Like literally if we hear it? What if someone lives right next to the musjid in a western country but they don’t give the azaan through the external speakers of the musjid so the sound of the azaan can just be heard inside, where as in some muslim countries the azaan can be heard from a distance of even 500 meters because of the speakers. Or should we consider how far the sound would travel if done in an open area (desert) and give the azaan without speakers and see how many meters it would travel? Another thing to keep in mind would be thick infrastructure and noise also plays a role on how far the azaan would travel these days. Jazak Allah Khair. Please explain if there has been some ignorance present in my question pertaining to context of Ahadeeth. This is so important as not praying woukd be kufr and if our prayers aren’t being in the masjid they might not be accepted. Also what about congregation prayer. Does that suffice? If he hears the azaan but prays in congregation somewhere else? Please provide evidence from Quran and Sunnah.

Bismillaah

A: There are two opinions. One is that it is obligatory and the other is that it is sunnat-e-muakkadah.

To the point where the azaan is audible all those living should attend the namaaz with jamaat. This is estimated to be approximately one and half kilometre.

And Allah Ta’ala (الله تعالى) knows best.

Answered by:

Mufti Ebrahim Salejee (Isipingo Beach)

This answer was collected from MuftiOnline.co.za, where the questions have been answered by Mufti Zakaria Makada (Hafizahullah), who is currently a senior lecturer in the science of Hadith and Fiqh at Madrasah Ta’leemuddeen, Isipingo Beach, South Africa.